ما لبسك الديباج والتاج مع — Muhammad Alshawkani

ما لُبْسُكَ الدِّيباجَ والتّاجَ مَعْ

رُكُوبِكَ الأَدْهَمَ الأَشْقَرا

Neither your wearing brocade and a crown, together with

your riding the black steed and the chestnut,

ولا اتِّساعُ المالِ وَهْوَ الذي

قَدْ تَيَّمَ الأَوَّلَ والآخِرا

nor abundance of wealth, which is what

has enthralled the first and the last,

ولا الرّياساتُ وإنْ طَوَلَتْ

وعَمّتِ الأكْبَرَ والأَصْغَرا

nor high offices, however extensive they grow,

encompassing the greatest and the least,

ولا عِناقُ الغِيدِ في مَجْلِسٍ

ضَوّعْتَ فيهِ النَّدَّ والعَنْبَرا

nor embracing graceful women in a gathering

where you have diffused incense and ambergris,

وَلا مُعاطَاةُ الكُؤوسِ التي

يَسْعَى بها ساقيكَ مُتْبَخْتِرا

nor passing round the cups that

your cupbearer hurries with, proudly strutting,

كَنيلِكَ العِلْمَ إذا نِلْتَهُ

وكُنْتَ في أَربْابِهِ الأَكْبَرا

equals your attaining knowledge, if you attain it

and become the greatest among its masters,

ولم تَقِفْ عَجْزاً عَلَى مَنْهَلٍ

مِنْهُ تَقُولُ الصَّيْدُ جَوْفَ الفَرا

without stopping helplessly at one watering-place

of it, saying, “The game is in the wild ass's belly.”

فَذَاكَ عَيْنُ الجَهْلِ فافْطَنْ لَهُ

فإنّهْ أَشأَمُ دَاءٍ سَرَى

For that is ignorance itself; be alert to it,

for it is the most ill-omened disease that has spread.

وابْرُزْ لِعِلْم الصَّرْفِ في كِسْوَةٍ

كانَتْ عَلَى ظَهْرِ الكِسائي تُرَى

And come forth for morphology in a robe

once seen upon al-Kisa'i's back.

وافْتَحْ فبالْمِفْتاحِ تَفْصِيلُ ما

فَصَّلَ جَارُ اللهِ مُسْتَفْسَرا

And unlock, for the Key gives the detail of what

Jar Allah expounded, awaiting explanation.

واهْتَدِ بالنَّجْمِ إذا أَظْلَمَ ال

إشْكالُ إن شِئْتض بأن تَبْصِرا

And follow the Star when darkness veils the

difficulty, if you wish to see clearly.

ولازِمِ التَّسْهِيلَ واسْتَغْنِ بالْ

مُغْنِي وحَرِّرْ مِثْلَ ما حَرَّرا

And keep to the Facilitation, and find sufficiency in the

Enricher; set matters down precisely as he did.

وهذِهِ كافِيَةٌ للفَتَى

شَافِيَةٌ للْجَهْلِ إنْ مَا سَرَى

And these are a Sufficiency for the young man,

a Cure for ignorance, should it ever spread.

والجَمْعُ في الجَمْعِ غَدَا فاعْتَصِمْ

بعِصْمَة اللهِ ودَعْ ما وَرَا

And the whole is gathered in the Compendium; so seek shelter

in God's protection, and leave what lies beyond.

واقْهَرْ بِعَبْدِ القاهِرِ الحَبْرِ في

عِلْمَيْهِ واظهِرْ سِرَّ ما سَيّرا

And prevail through the scholar 'Abd al-Qahir in

his two sciences, and reveal the secret of what he circulated.

وَطَوِّلِ الإيضاحَ أَوْ لخِّصِ ال

أَطْوَلَ وارْقَ الفَلَكَ الدائرا

And expand the Clarification, or abridge the

Longer, and ascend the revolving sphere.

وَأَوْجزِ التِّبْيانَ إن رُمْتَ أَنْ

تَكُونَ فِيهِ المثَلَ السّائِرا

And condense the Elucidation, if you seek to

become in it a proverbial exemplar.

وعِلْمُ رسْطاليسَ فِيهِ الشِّفا

وَهْوَ الشِّفا إنْ كُنْتَ مُسْتَبْصِرا

In Aristotle's science lies the Healing,

and it is healing indeed, if you have insight.

فَهَذِّبِ الفِكْرَ بتَهْذِيبِهِ

واطْلَعْ بذاكَ المطْلَعَ الأَنْورَا

So refine thought through his Refinement,

and rise thereby to the more luminous rising-place.

واشْرَحْ بِشَرْحِ القلْبِ صَدْراً وَلاَ

تَهْجُرَ شَرْحَ السَّعْدِ خَيْرِ الوَرَى

And open your breast through the heart's exposition; do not

forsake the commentary of Sa'd, the best of mankind.

وَطَوّلِ البَالَ إنِ اسْطَعْتَ في

عِلْمِ أُصُولِ الفِقْهِ والْغِ المِرا

And be patient, if you can, in

the science of jurisprudence's principles, and banish disputation.

وادْرَأ بعَضْدِ الدِّينِ وَجْهَ الّذي

في مُنْتَهى تَحْقِيقِهِ قَصَّرا

And with 'Adud al-Din, turn away the face of one

who fell short in the utmost reach of his inquiry.

جَوَاهِرُ التّحْقِيقِ قَدْ جَبَّرَتْ

ما السَّعْدُ في تَعْلِيعِهِ كَسَّرا

The jewels of inquiry have mended

what Sa'd shattered in his gloss.

وابلُغْ إلى الغَايَة فالجَمْع فال

مِعْيار أن تَفْهَمَ ما حَرِّرا

And reach the Goal, then the Compendium, then the

Criterion, so that you understand what was set forth.

خُضْ في أُصُولِ الدِّينِ غَاياتِها

واشْكُرْ لمتّوَيْهِ ما ذَكَرا

Plunge into the furthest reaches of religion's foundations,

and thank Mattawayh for what he mentioned.

والمجْتَبَى عِنْدِي هُوَ الْمُجْتَبَى

وسِفْرُ ما نَكْدِيمَ قَدْ أَسْفرا

And al-Mujtaba is, to me, the chosen one,

and Manakdim's volume has shone forth.

واقْصِمْ حبالَ الجَبْرِ إن أعْضَلَتْ

ثم اعْتَصِمْ بِحَمْدِ ذَاكَ السُّرا

And snap the cords of determinism if they prove intractable,

then find shelter in praise of that night journey.

مَواقِفُ التَّحْقِيقِ لا تَعْدُها

إنْ كُنْتَ بالتَّدْقِيقِ مُسْتَبْصرا

The stations of inquiry—do not pass beyond them,

if close scrutiny has made you clear-sighted.

واسْبَحْ بقامُوسِ اللَّغى والبُغَى

صِحَاحُها تَلْقَ بِها جَوْهَرا

And swim in the Ocean of tongues and quests;

in their Sound Forms you will find a jewel.

واجْلُ وَهُوماً أَظْلَمَتْ بالضِّيا

ولُذْ بِشَمْسٍ لِعُلُومٍ تَرَى

And with Light, dispel fancies that have grown dark,

and seek shelter in a Sun of sciences; you will see

أَسَاسُها إن رُمْتَ تَحْقِيقَها

أَساسُها أكْرِمْ بِهِ دَفْتَرا

their foundation, if you seek to ascertain them;

their Foundation—how noble a volume it is!

وكُنْ خَلِيلاً لِلخَليلِ الّذي

عِلْمُ الأَعارِيضِ بِهِ أَسْفَرا

And be a close friend to al-Khalil, the one

through whom the science of meters dawned.

واقْطَعْ بتَقْطيعاتِ قَطّاعِهِ

حُلْقُومَ مَنْ أَوْرَدَ أَو أَصْدَرَا

And cut, with its cutter's scansions,

the throat of whoever brings in or sends out.

وجُزَّ إن شِئْتَ بجَزَّازَةٍ

لِحْيَةَ مَنْ جَاءَ يُريدُ الْمِرا

And shear, if you wish, with a pair of shears,

the beard of whoever comes seeking dispute.

وخُضْ غِمارَ الفِقْهِ إنْ شِئْتَ أَنْ

تَطُولَ إمّا امْرُؤٌ قَصَّرا

And plunge into jurisprudence's depths if you wish to

stand tall when a man falls short.

فاسْقِ بِبَحْرِ الغَيْثِ أَزْهارَهُ

واجْنِ مِنَ الأَثْمارِ ما أَثمرا

Then water its flowers with the sea of rain,

and gather from the fruits whatever it has borne.

ثم انْتَصِرْ بالاِنْتِصارِ الّذي

صَارَ لِفِقْهِ العُتْرَةِ النَّاظِرا

Then gain victory through the Victory, which

became the examiner of the jurisprudence of the Prophet's kin.

وحَكِّمِ الأَحْكامَ ثُمَّ انْتخِبْ

فُنُونَها وابْنِ عَلَى ما تَرَى

And make the Rulings your judge, then select

their branches, and build upon what you see.

إنْ أظْلَمَ الإشْكالُ قابَلْتَهُ

بالضَّوْءِ تَغْدُو عِنْدَ ذَا مُبْصِرا

If perplexity grows dark, confront it

with Light; then you will become clear-sighted.

والْمَقْصِدُ الأَسْنَى مَعَ الغَايَةِ ال

قُصْوىَ معَ الهَدْيِ بِلا افْتِرا

And the loftiest aim, together with the goal—

the utmost—with guidance, without fabrication:

عَلِّمْ كِتابَ اللهِ والسُّنَّةَ ال

بَيْضاءَ فَاعْقُدْ عِنْدَ ذا الخِنْصَرا

teach God's Book and the Sunnah,

radiantly white; at this, bend your little finger.

وافْتَحْ بالمفْتاحِ أَرْتاجَ ما

غُلِّقْ وأظْهِرْ سِرَّ ما أَظْهَرا

And with the Key unlock the doors of whatever

was locked, and reveal the secret of what he revealed.

ولازِمِ الكَشَّافَ عَنْ أَوْجثهِ التّ

نْزِيلِ واسْتَوْضِحْ بما حَرَّرا

And keep to al-Kashshaf on the aspects of the

Revelation; seek clarity through what he wrote.

وانْظُرْ إلى فَرْخَيْهِ إن عَشْعَشا

وكُنْ مَعَ نَاهِضِهَا طائِرا

And look to its two fledglings if they nest,

and fly alongside its fledgling taking wing.

وارْضَعْ بِثَدْيِ الأُمَّهاتِ الّتي

تَحْنُو ويَكْفيكَ بِها مَفْخَرا

And suckle at the breast of the mothers who

show tenderness; in them you have pride enough.

والجامِعَيْنِ اعْكِفْ بِنادِيهِما

وكُنْ لِمَنْ شَادَهُما شاكِرا

And devote yourself to the two Compendia at their gathering-place,

and be grateful to whoever built them both.

ثُمَّ الْمَسانِيدِ الّتي أَرْسَلَتْ

سِهامَها نَحْوَ رُؤوسِ الْمِرا

Then the Musnads, which have sent

their arrows toward the heads of dispute.

والْمُنْتَقَى عِنْدِي هُوَ الْمُنْتَقَى

فَحُطْ بما أَلَّفَهُ مَخْبَرا

And al-Muntaqa is, to me, the select one;

so encompass what he compiled with informed knowledge.

وأَصْلِحْ ما تَجْهَلُ تَفْصِيلَهُ

بِنَظْمِ زَيْنِ الدِّينِ عَيْنِ الوَرَى

And correct what you do not know in detail

through the verse of Zayn al-Din, the foremost of mankind.

وابْنُ الصَّلاحِ البَحْرُ عَوِّلْ عَلَى

آرائِهِ إنْ شِئْتَ أن تَشْكرا

And Ibn al-Salah, the ocean—rely on

his judgments, if you wish to give thanks.

وحَبْرُ بَغْدادَ الخَطِيبُ الذِي

صَارَ بإجْماعٍ بهِ الماهِرا

And Baghdad's scholar, al-Khatib, who

became, by consensus, its master.

وانْتَخِبِ التَّنْقِيحَ إنْ أَعْضَلَ التَّط

ويلُ والتَّفْتيشُ أَوْ أَعْكَرا

And choose the Refinement if difficulty arises from

prolongation and searching, or they cloud matters.

واقْتَدِ في النَّقْلِ بقَطّانِهِ

واغمض عَلَى تَلْيِينِه جَعْفَرا

And in transmission, follow its Qattan,

and overlook his deeming Ja'far weak.

كَذا ابْنُ مَهْديٍّ وكيعٌ معَ

شُعْبَةَ أعنِي الحافِظَ الأَكْبَرا

Likewise Ibn Mahdi and Waki', with

Shu'bah—I mean the greatest keeper of traditions.

وابنُ مَعينٍ وعَلِيٌّ كَذا

أحْمَدُ بَحْرُ العِلْمِ بَدْرُ السُّرَى

And Ibn Ma'in and 'Ali; likewise

Ahmad, the ocean of knowledge, the full moon of night journeys.

كَذا أَبُو زُرْعَةَ مِنْ قَبْلِهِ

فَخْرُ بُخَارَى مَنْ غَدا مَفخرا

Likewise Abu Zur'ah; before him,

the pride of Bukhara, who became a source of pride.